Description
My Island is the tenth full-length album by the American indie rock band Starflyer 59, released on Tooth & Nail Records in September 2006. All Music Guide claimed that “Starflyer 59 has been quietly releasing some of the best guitar rock of the last half-decade. My Island does absolutely nothing to break up the string of smartly produced, expertly played and melody-rich albums Jason Martin and friends have snuck under the radar…”
In 2007, Jason Martin founded a new band named Neon Horse together with the lead singer of Stavesacre, Mark Salomon, and Steven Dail of Project 86 fame (who actully played bass on Starflyer’s My Island), releasing their self-titled debut album in May 2007. The same year Martin did also release The Brothers Martin, a collaborative album recorded together with his brother Ronnie Martin of Joy Electric fame. Lies, the third album by Jason Martin’s side project Bon Voyage, was released in June 2008, and Dial M, Starflyer’s eleventh full-length album, followed in October.
Musically, Jason Martin seems to be taking less influence from ’80s mope-rock, synth-pop, and shoegaze, and more from post-punk. Primary points of reference here are the Psychedelic Furs (the angular, incisive title track), Echo & the Bunnymen (the swelling, majestic «Ideas for the Talented»), and Joy Division (the hard-charging «The Lifeguard», most of the rest). But there’s also an interesting twist: As on Old, Martin references the ’70s as well. Before sweeping into an airy, Joe Pernice-like chorus, «I Win» sounds like a more jaunty version of «Don’t Fear the Reaper». The double-time glam stomp of highlight «Mic the Mic» is unmistakable, and the title of «It’s All Right Blondie» alludes to the song’s steady, half-disco gait and quirky synthesizer – ie Blondie. Martin is still Martin, so touches like lead guitars following the vocal melody and keyboard flourishes are still in place. The only real bone for fans of the “classic” Starflyer 59 sound, however, is the downbeat «Division», which features the familiar layers of guitars and one of those choruses that sounds like Martin’s slipping into a deep, dark pit. [Pop Matters]
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/my-island/714560925)
CD tracklist:
01. The Frontman – 2:43
02. Nice Guy – 5:12
03. I Win – 3:05
04. Division – 3:07
05. Mic the Mic – 3:09
06. It’s Alright Blondie – 2:36
07. My Island – 2:59
08. Pearl of Great Price – 3:42
09. Lifeguard – 3:46
10. Ideas for the Talented – 3:19
“I Win” (MUSIC VIDEO)
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